The Checklist: Reverse Image Search Edition

Debunking fakes from Baltimore, humanitarian verification in Nepal, news MOOC from University of Hong Kong, and more

The Checklist is a weekly newsletter of links, case studies and research around verification and user-generated content, brought to you by the Checkdesk team. Sign up to have your own free copy delivered direct to your inbox every Tuesday.

1. How to Be a Good Internet Citizen During Breaking News

But how informed are we really by these glimpses? Is there enough context? Who do we trust when the information is potentially coming from those who have a vested interest in a cause? We have to wrestle with some of these questions when dealing with members of the mainstream media already, but their reputation often precedes them, putting the information shared in perspective. How do you apply that to a random internet handle that just popped into your feed? Most importantly, now that we are all able to engage in citizen journalism, what responsibility do we have to get it right?

2. TIL: How to find the time a photo was shared on Instagram

While searching for social media photos shared from Baltimore today (using Gramfeed), I was trying to work out the exact time pictures were uploaded to Instagram. I realised the time a photo is shared on Instagram is recorded in the embed code.

3. The viral choice: too good to check — or too good not to debunk?

We are in the golden age of verification: a generation of journalists trained to process content rather than check it; the culling of the subs who used to; and a generation raised on bullshit with the means to check it and the networks to exchange notes. This week alone saw two of the best examples of debunking you’re likely to see all year: BuzzFeed’s dismantling of the output of news agency Central European News (CEN); and the crowdsourced critique of a letter purporting to be from ‘businesses supporting the Conservative Party’.

4. Baltimore ‘looting’ tweets show importance of quick and easy image checks

Anyone who has ever asked me for tips on content verification and debunking of fakes knows one of the first things I always mention is reverse image search. It’s one of the simplest and most powerful tools at your disposal. This week provided another good example of how overlooked it is.

5. Online Fact-Checking Tool Gets a Big Test with Nepal Earthquake

Often, a large number of tweets coming from the same place and reporting the same general thing is enough verification, says Mackinnon. But sometimes the team encounters tweets “that don’t quite fit” with what the crowd is saying. Often these are untrue, but it is crucial that they be verified as quickly as possible in case they contain vital information.

6. Free Course of the Week: Making Sense of News

STARTS MAY 19, 2015: With social media and a 24/7 news cycle, how do we — as news consumers — make sense of what we hear and read? At a time when we are flooded with an abundance of information and disinformation, it is essential for each one of us to become a more discerning news consumer. This six-week course will help you identify reliable information in news reports and become better informed about the world we live.

7. Debunk of the Week: FOX Affiliate ends up on the wrong continent (should have used reverse image search…..)*

Can you spot what’s wrong with the image below? Test your reverse image search skills!

*but they did issue an apology.